Based on analysis of multiple outside rankings, Rooney is one of the most reliable Republican votes, meaning he can be considered a safe vote for the Republican Party in Congress.

Biography

Rooney was raised in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida and graduated from the Benjamin High School in North Palm Beach, Florida. Following high school, Tom went on to play college football at Syracuse University and Washington and Jefferson College.[4] Rooney attended the University of Florida where he received his M.A. in Political Science. After that, he went to the University of Miami School of Law where he received his J.D.. He became a member of The Florida Bar Association in 1999.[4]

Issues

Presidential preference

Specific votes

Fiscal Cliff

Rooney voted against the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. He was one of 151 Republicans that voted against the bill. The bill was passed in the House by a 257/167 vote on January 1, 2013.[8]

Full history

To view the full congressional electoral history for Thomas J. Rooney, click [show] to expand the section.

2010

On November 2, 2010, Thomas J. Rooney won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Jim Horn (D) and William Dean (I) in the general election.[10]

U.S. House, Florida District 16 General Election, 2010

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Republican

Thomas J. Rooneyincumbent

66.8%

162,285

Democratic

Jim Horn

33.1%

80,327

Independent

William Dean

0.1%

151

Total Votes

242,763

2008

On November 4, 2008, Thomas J. Rooney won election to the United States House. He defeated Tim Mahoney (D) in the general election.[11]

U.S. House, Florida District 16 General Election, 2008

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Republican

Thomas J. Rooney

60.1%

209,874

Democratic

Tim Mahoney

39.9%

139,373

Total Votes

349,247

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Rooney is available dating back to 2008. Based on available campaign finance records, Rooney raised a total of $4,138,571 during that time period. This information was last updated on April 4, 2013.[12]

Lifetime voting record

According to the website GovTrack, Rooney missed 37 of 3,350 roll call votes from Jan 2009 to Mar 2013. This amounts to 1.1%, which is better than the median of 2.2% among current congressional representatives as of March 2013.[16]

Congressional staff salaries

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Rooney paid his congressional staff a total of $940,167 in 2011. He ranks 147th on the list of the lowest paid Republican Representative Staff Salaries and he ranks 191st overall of the lowest paid Representative Staff Salaries in 2011. Overall, Florida ranks 36th in average salary for representative staff. The average U.S. House of Representatives congressional staff was paid $954,912.20 in fiscal year 2011.[17]

Net worth

2011

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Rooney's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $1,084,015 and $5,847,998. That averages to $3,466,006, which is lower than the average net worth of Republican Representatives in 2011 of $7,859,232. His average net worth decreased by 8.40% from 2010.[18]

2010

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Rooney's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $1,365,008 and $6,202,999. That averages to $3,784,003.50, which is lower than the average net worth of Republican Representatives in 2010 of $7,561,133.[19]